Driver Medical Certificates

The lack of readiness by some states to incorporate driver medical cards with the driver CDL has lead the FMCSA to delay the date in which drivers are no longer required to carry paper copies of their medical cards. The original deadline for states to be ready to implement their programs was January 2014. Because some states have yet to convert, the FMCSA has announced that Drivers must continue to carry paper copies of their medical certification, as is rule now, until Jan. 30, 2015. It is unclear if the deadline for drivers to self-report their operating status and provide their CDL-issuing state with a valid medical certificate has been extended as well. As of this writing, the driver deadline is still Jan. 30, 2014.

By rule, drivers have been required to report their operating status and provide medical certificates when renewing their CDL since Jan. 30, 2012. Drivers who do not self-report are subject to losing their CDL privileges.